Hope Hicks Biography

Hope Charlotte Hicks (born October 21, 1988) is the interim White House Communications Director for President Donald Trump, succeeding Anthony Scaramucci. As of August 16, 2017, she held the title of White House Director of Strategic Communications, and was Trump's longest-serving political aide.

She previously served as the press secretary and early communications director for Trump's 2016 campaign, as well as the national press secretary for his presidential transition team. In January 2017, Hicks was included on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list.

Early life and education

Hicks grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut. She is the daughter of Caye Ann (Cavender) Hicks and Paul Burton Hicks III.

Hicks was a teenage model, including for a Ralph Lauren campaign with her older sister Mary Grace at age 11 and as the face of the Hourglass Adventures novels about a time-traveling 10-year-old. She was the cover model for The It Girl (2005), first novel in the series by Cecily von Ziegesar.

She attended Greenwich High School, where she was co-captain of the lacrosse team, and graduated in 2006. She next attended Southern Methodist University, where she majored in English and played lacrosse on a club lacrosse program she helped start, and graduated in 2010.

Career

Hicks started in public relations with the New York City firm, Zeno Group.

Hicks began working for public relations firm Hiltzik Strategies in 2012, working for its client Ivanka Trump, Donald Trump's daughter, on her fashion line, and then on other Trump ventures.

In August 2014 she joined the Trump Organization full-time. Hicks worked for Ivanka Trump inside Trump Tower, helping expand her fashion label (the Ivanka Trump Collection) and modeling for her online store.

Five months later, Donald Trump earmarked Hicks, who was 26 years old at the time, for the role of press secretary in January 2015 when planning for his potential presidential run. Donald Trump summoned her to his office and, as she tells it, "Mr. Trump looked at me and said, 'I'm thinking about running for president, and you're going to be my press secretary.'" Until that time, she had never worked in politics, nor volunteered on a campaign. After Trump's first primary victories, Hicks was asked to choose between staying with the Trump Organization or working on the campaign full time. She initially decided to leave the campaign, but Trump convinced her to remain and she stayed on as press secretary.

During the campaign, she played the role of gatekeeper to press members who wanted to speak with Trump, handling over 250 requests a day, and deciding which reporters would be allowed to speak with him. Hicks also took dictation from Trump for his tweets, and then sent the text to another person in the Trump organization who actually sent out the tweets from Trump's official account. When in New York City, she would spend most of her day sitting in Trump's office, handling inquiries from the press and taking dictation from him to tweet. The demands of the campaign took a personal toll, as they caused a breakup between Hicks and her boyfriend of six years.

On December 22, 2016, it was announced that Hicks would become part of the Trump Administration, in the newly created position of the White House Director of Strategic Communications. She is paid the highest White House salary; $179,700, equal to the salaries of two other top members, former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon and former White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus. In January 2017, Hicks was included on the Forbes 30 Under 30 list, having "served as a one-woman press team for Trump's historic presidential campaign."

Hicks was criticized by some with regard to a statement she issued on May 29, 2017, regarding President Trump's character and personality. The statement, ridiculed by Washington Post reporter Callum Borchers as approaching parody comparable to Saturday Night Live, read:

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On August 16, 2017, she was made the interim White House Communications Director (the last Director having been Anthony Scaramucci). Politico labelled her the "Untouchable Hope Hicks," as she was considered one of the few White House officials whose job was safe, and she was one of only two White House communications officials who Scaramucci had announced were definitely staying when he was first hired.

Personal life

She and her sister lived above a dive bar in Greenwich, but she split her time between that apartment and a Trump-owned apartment in Manhattan, until Trump was elected and she moved to Washington, D.C. Her father is managing director of the Glover Park Group.